Community work recognised

COLIN SMITH/Nelson Mail

HELPING OTHERS: Nelson City Council Community Spirit Award recipients Graeme Cotton, Madeline Barrow, Bryce Buckland, Barbara Rhodes, Bob Murray and Di Cressey.

Madeline Barrow sat down in the Nelson City Council chambers last night and traced her finger under the word "spirit" on the award in front of her.

The Maori Warden chairwoman turned to her neighbour and quietly said: "That's what it is about".

Ms Barrow was one of six members of the Nelson community who received an inaugural Community Spirit Award to recognise the many people who make the time and the effort to help others.

Mayor Kerry Marshall said the awards were a reminder of how blessed Nelson was to have people in the community who went above and beyond the call of duty.

Youth councillor Natasha Wilkinson said as well as helping young people keep safe on the streets, Ms Barrow had given families and elderly people warmer winters, with better access to firewood, and helped bereaved families with home visits and support at the Nelson Hospital.

Ms Barrow said it was a "humble privilege" to receive the award, but the many sleepless nights and callouts over the years were thanks to a team of people.

"So if we look older than we really are, you will understand."

Bryce Buckland launched a blog two years ago, which helped to co-ordinate teams of volunteers to monitor traps and tracks on the Grampians.

Mr Buckland said it had always worried him that there was not much birdlife in that area, but his eventual hope was to have complaints from people being woken up by many noisy tuis.

Di Cressey applied her skills and connections to the Altrusa House project at Nelson Hospital in the 1990s.

After a fundraising drive, the house opened in 1995, offering accommodation for relatives of patients. She has also been involved with Habitat for Humanity, helping to support teams working overseas and assisting local families as they move into their new homes.

Nelson launch warden and small-craft safety adviser Graeme Cotton was recognised for his tireless efforts in helping locals become safer on the water.

Councillor Pete Rainey said Mr Cotton put in many volunteer hours and was not afraid to front up to people flouting the five-knot speed limit within the marina and harbour.

Mr Cotton said he just did it for "something to do" and "educating bricks to float" was an ongoing task.

Bob Murray, of the Nelson Railway Society, has worked alongside Nelson Community Probation and Psychological services for the past 10 years, providing supervised work for low-risk offenders.

Bishop Richard Ellena said Mr Murray's teams of workers had laid more than 2km of railway track at Founders Heritage Park, cleaning and clearing the line as they went.

"Bob can certainly be said to have helped hundreds of Nelson people to get themselves back on track."

Another recipient was the microfilming sub-committee of the Friends of the Nelson Library which started to fundraise in 1994 to make copies of the Nelson Evening Mail freely available to the public.

In four years, they had raised $180,000 for the project, which was completed in 2002.

The Rev Andy Joseph said the microfilm was a wonderful resource for the community, especially those wanting to research family history or find out about an event from the past.

Mr Marshall said all the recipients were also a great asset to the community. "I salute them for their dedication and generosity."

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